Why Pay Big $$$ to get Frisked, Fondled and Insulted by TSA Thugs?

TSA Worker

Chicago, IL— In my early adulthood going to a Bears game at Chicago’s Solider Field with girlfriends included a small bottle of brandy and a blanket.  The blanket was used to keep warm while concealing certain enjoyable other mischief during the game.

Back then going to a major sporting event was a lot of fun.  However in recent decades sports teams and certain venues have begun an effort to frisk patrons. 

I hate this despicable effort frankly we’ve fought wars so we’d never have to submit to this kind of crap.   The majority of patrons are too young and just don’t understand the serious implications of what they are willingly accepting.

At first this was about bringing alcohol into the venue but quickly expanded looking for snacks and finally for concealed weapons.  Private security guards who avoided being too invasive or authoritarian did the searches.  Frankly it was more about revenue for their food service contractors than anything else.

I have little interest in going to sports events because of the cost, miserable traffic, and parking issues.  Technology has come to my rescue!  My terrific big screen high definition LED flat panel television allows me to see the games at the best possible vantage point. 

My snacks at home are better, a lot cheaper and don’t involve standing in concession lines.  Frankly I take great delight in staying home and avoiding all of the negatives involved while I lounge on my own very comfortable furniture.

Now the TSA with their cancer like spread over our everyday lives is trying to take over sporting and concert event security.  Even the sheep that have been brainwashed into believing the TSA has some anti-terrorist value are personally uncomfortable near the TSA’s dim-witted and snotty workers.  

Seeing TSA workers at airports is bad enough but tolerating these otherwise unemployable douchebags at an entertainment venue simply kills my enjoyment and spirit.   Who needs a skunk invading their picnic?

I simply won’t attend any event or fly where submitting to searches like a criminal is required unless I have no other options.   Nearly every airline has been put into bankruptcy by the TSA because people have avoided TSA tyranny.

The entire tourism industry has taken a huge financial hit from the Gestapo like TSA and now we have an additional 500 traffic deaths every year because of people like me that refuse to fly when traveling lass than 500 miles.

As Americans we need to draw a line in the sand where our personal liberty is concerned.   We have the power to vote with our wallets and purses.   We can simply stop attending any event where the indignity of frisking is involved.

Drew Peterson and the Prosecutor’s Case

Drew Peterson   Photo by Paul Huebl

Joliet, IL—The prosecution in the murder trial of retired Bolingbrook, IL police sergeant Drew Peterson is taking its last gasp. 

The Illinois Legislature put their foot on the scales of justice by enacting the, “Drew Peterson Hearsay Law.”  That allowed gossip rather than sworn direct testimony be used as evidence in this trial.  They still, have yet to make a case for murder.

They put up two forensic experts that were convinced that Kathleen Savio was murdered based on their re-examination of remains that had been decaying in a grave for over three years.  They may be right but it’s only their best guess and speculation.

Of course there is the original investigation and autopsy on fresh remains that were determined to be the result of an accidental death.  We can’t now guess that if the first group of investigators and experts did a better job what the results might have been.  It is what it is.

The problem with the prosecution, their investigators and experts is that none of them could recreate the event.  They can’t even say how Savio received her scalp wound or if or when the scene was somehow rearranged.

Nobody can explain how Drew Peterson could enter the house since the locks were changed and he was not welcome there.

Savio was prescribed mood-altering drugs but apparently was not taking them.  She hated Drew Peterson and made no secret of that fact as she fought in court for his police pension and other assets.  It’s a reality that divorce litigants seek favor from the court by making extreme allegations during court proceedings. 

The missing Stacy Peterson is really not a part of this case.  Many people want to believe she is dead and that Peterson murdered her.  That case has lots of huge problems.  Unanswered questions are all around, none the least of which is where is she and if she’s dead, how’d she get that way.

Stacy was another woman troubled by a crappy marriage to Drew Peterson.  She consoled herself with dating other men. 

There are two very troubling hearsay witnesses in this mess.  One is the preacher I call Rev. Bootycall.  This religious leader meets his attractive, troubled and married lady followers, not at the house of worship, but at coffee houses.   I hope I’m not the only one that sees how inappropriate that conduct appears. 

 I consider Rev. Bootycall an opportunist looking to expand his fan base and celebrity His “contribution” here will certainly help in that regard. 

The next pathetic soul is the alleged hit-man candidate.  This unemployed and unemployable loser is another opportunist.  Once the tabloids came throwing money around he “suddenly remembered” that Drew Peterson solicited him to murder Savio.  His hearsay testimony stands alone without a shred of evidence he’s telling the truth. 

Hearsay has been kept out of American courts for a reason.  The defendant must be given an opportunity to confront his accuser in court.  Drew Peterson has been denied that most fundamental right in the Will County Circuit Court.  That is what I call, government tyranny.

Even with the hearsay, there is insufficient evidence of a crime and no evidence beyond the motive of an uncomfortable divorce. 

The Judge should grant a rare Directed Verdict of Not Guilty.  If that does not happen Peterson’s lawyers will have to offer up the sworn testimony of investigators, experts and perhaps an impeachment witness or two.  

As for the jury, they’re reading everything they can find on the web and other sources.  Some will hate Drew Peterson but some will try and be fair.  Getting a conviction from a unanimous jury should be difficult if not impossible.  We will have to see what the near future will hold. 

NYPD Officers Turned a Street Murder into a Bloodbath of Innocent Civilians

New York, NY—Yesterday a man fired from his job exacted revenge on a fellow employee in front of the Empire State Building by shooting him dead with a .45 pistol.   The man fled and local construction workers reportedly directed cops to the armed offender on the crowded city street. 

Police officers apparently felt threatened by the armed killer and opened fire upon him killing him.   In the process nine innocent bystanders suffered bullet wounds.  Today it was sadly determined that every bystander injured was shot by police bullets. 

Only a small percentage of cops really like firearms and strive to become proficient with them.  Most cops are satisfied if they can simply get a minimum qualifying shooting score.   That being said are the standards for qualification set high enough?

In my days as a cop in Chicago I was required to qualify four times per year on the range.   The department paid for the ammunition I used and that alone does not make anyone a proficient shooter. 

The best firearms marksmen that compete in tournaments have ammunition delivered to them on wooden palates by forklifts. They don’t become so incredibly accurate by shooting four times a year, not by a long shot.

What they have done with the Chicago Police Department is a public safety scandal.  They have reduced the number of qualification times per year to just one.  They only issue each officer 30 rounds for practice per year.  

Because of the limited constraints on qualification and practice the issue of fraud connected to the scoring and identification efforts of the officers actually shooting.  From the top down many officers just can’t qualify and range masters simply hold their nose and look the other way.  It's difficult to let police bosses fake scores and not give the same courtesy to patrol officers. 

There are officers that are reasonably effective with such limited practice but they are rare to find.  Most however desperately need the in service firearms training. 

Most gun battles take place between arm’s length and little more.   Cops rarely fire at suspects more than three meters away.  Marksmanship generally is not an issue. But that’s hardly comforting to the public that sees the wonderful but faked shooting skills of their favorite fictional TV cop heroes.   The public expects and deserves better.

Cop shooting deaths are down, not because they have better skills, but because of protective vests, better firearms and holsters.  A few decades ago more than 50% of officers killed were shot with their own guns.  Improved gun retention training and better holsters have made a big difference.

Modern emergency medical practitioners deserves a huge salute these days because they are able to save the lives of more than 90% of those victims who are shot by firearms.

For my cop readers, please for your own safety please get to the range and sharpen up because your families want you safe. 

Rham Emanuel’s Epic Failure Makes Chicago More Violent than Ever!

Chicago, IL—Within hours 20 people were shot last night in the Windy City and it wasn’t even on the weekend.   The carnage is confined to Chicago’s African-American community that celebrates a culture of violence, drug abuse and general depravity.  

Despite having the nation’s most onerous three-decade old total gun bans, shootings here are as prevalent as typical war zones.   

50 ward bosses or Aldermen control Chicago.  The wards are relatively small geographic areas that elect their local strongman.  The problem is that in the high crime wards the elected Alderman are by default deeply entrenched in gangs, crime, drugs and general corruption.  That’s just the Chicago way.

The 50-ward system worked a lot better before the massive and sudden migration of disenfranchised and poor Blacks from the South of the 1960s.  Horrible social engineering turned those migrants into a needy, ignorant and dependent population that were easily controlled through generous handouts.  Today excessive violence and carnage is a way of life in these African-American communities.

Chicago’s ward bosses simply want what’s best for their own street gang members.  It’s the ward bosses that make the policy of police enforcement.  The conflict of interest is obvious.  None of them want their crime soldiers put at risk by allowing effective policing or the law-abiding citizens to possess or carry firearms for self-defense.  The ward bosses do all they can to enable violence rather than deter crime.

Rham Emanuel inherited this mess and fell right in to place by giving in to the demands of the most vocal ward bosses. The ward bosses keep coming up with so-called anti-violence plans that are little more than extortion demands.  

One solution they came up with just a few months ago was laughable but in reality beyond tragic.  Chicago’s political leadership handed over $1,000,000.00 tax dollars to a group of convicted street thugs called, Ceasfire.  These known criminals promised to reign in their fellow thugs and slow down the violence.  As any sane or sober person could reasonably predict the money vanished and the murder rate continued to soar. 

Chicago has lost a significant amount of productive taxpayers who by necessity became exiled tax refugees.   Loads of major employers have shuttered their properties relocating to where taxation is far less extortionate. 

Chicago’s politicians cannot provide adequately for their own personal greed enough to spend money on the police department so many of them hate. The manpower is shrinking fast and officers are just not being replaced.  Accordingly the remaining ranks are far to thin and ill equipped to combat the violence in any meaningful way.

Chicago has been awash with frightening Black on White ethnic violence in the Gold Coast area that were a stronghold for tourism and productive taxpayers.  That can only last long enough for those people to realize the danger and flee this once great metropolis.

Mayor Emanuel or any politician that wants to save Chicago must figure a method to consolidate the wards into perhaps five wards instead of 50.  That would greatly reduce the power local gangs have over City Hall.  The new ward bosses should be required to undergo strict background investigations and drug testing before their names could be placed on ballots to run for office.

Chicago’s productive and law-abiding citizens should no longer be restrained from their rights to keep and bear firearms and meaningful self-defense. 

Productive Chicagoans must be given tax and financial reasons to stay and continue to contribute to Chicago.  Likewise employers must be brought back with tax breaks as well as a safe environment for their employees to liver and work.

As long as Chicago maintains the 50-ward system this city will become the nastiest and most dangerous place to live in any nation.

Is Janet Napolitano Jumping the Good Ship Obama?

Waving goodbye to Barack Obama

Washington, DC—Until now Janet Napolitano’s personal reputation was considered somewhat clean.  Yes, the rumors about her lesbian relationship with a subordinate under her in both Arizona and at Homeland Security were never exactly a secret.  I think we can all separate her suspected Gay sex life from those more important issues of integrity.

The Obama Administration is fraught with scandal primarily in the areas of obstructing justice.   The law enforcement activities presided over by Napolitano was simply gutted when it comes to immigration enforcement, border protection and removal of dangerous criminal aliens.  Isn’t that what Homeland Security is all about?

There’s an old saying, “if you lay down with dogs you will wake up with fleas.”  I imaging Napolitano is itching all over about now considering the mutts she’s been around.

I guess taxpayers must get used to paying billions for our border cops and their equipment to simply remain idle as we invite the ignorant, poor and some very nasty criminals from our Southern hemisphere to have their way with all of us.    They can of course enjoy our paying for their medical care, schools as they become addicted to our entitlements reserved for citizens and legal residents. 

Whether you agree or not our immigration laws were enacted by Congress and are the law of the land.  Presidents or anyone that prevents enforcement of the law are committing a serious impeachable and felony crime.  Napolitano is directly in the food chain of those conspiring to break the law.  That should in and of itself make Napolitano beyond uncomfortable. Especially when you consider she prosecuted hundreds if not thousands of people for these offenses while she was the U.S. Attorney for Arizona.

Consider the current litany of lawlessness of Obama’s Attorney General, Napolitano would be first to get scapegoated pushed under the bus.  The Fast and Furious scandal, the New Black Panther voter intimidation cover up and now the mass shutdown of immigration enforcement shows absolutely massive corruption.

Napolitano has become loathed over the TSA and their despicable mistreatment of air travelers.   There no shortage of photos depicting Napolitano as a Nazi war criminal all across the Internet. Was Napolitano just following orders to bankrupt the airline through tyrannical traveler abuse? Or was she acting alone?  Napolitano can retire and disappear now or face the music later as she sinks with the ship.

Currently a sex scandal is rocking Homeland security and it’s brining on lots of negative attention to Napolitano and her circle of gal pals.   What an opportune time for her to say goodbye.  

Dealing with High Profile Ugly Incidents and Celebrity Crisis Media Relations

Lindsay Lohan in handcuffs     Court pool camera image

Los Angeles, CA—The most meaningless police incidents can quickly elevate to crisis proportions.  That’s especially true for celebrities.  We’ve all seen damaging video of celebrity’s antics surrounding minor conflicts.  When such an event becomes national news it’s no longer insignificant. 

When you become a celebrity your privacy can become all but non-existent.    Along with the big cash and perks comes the media magnifying glass. 

Whatever you do pick your new friends carefully because all manner of danger can come from strangers with big smiles.   Drug dealers, extortionists and stalkers always seem to circle around celebrities like sharks.

It never hurts to have a new friend or business associate quietly checked out by a reputable private investigator.   That can save you millions later.  When you hire bodyguards look for recently retired cops or qualified licensed private investigators.  They must know how to avoid troublesome conflicts. 

As a long time cop and defense investigator I have seen both side of celebrity cases.  I need to begin with a shocking fact; cops, prosecutors or judges never treat celebrities equally.  For too many of these government officials, attaching themselves to celebrities brings brushes with fame and hope of fortune. 

The O.J. Simpson case changed many lives and made lucrative careers for cops, lawyers and low ranking journalists. 

What I’m saying is that cops are far more inclined to arrest a celebrity than to give the benefit of the doubt.  Prosecutors likewise will commence a prosecution of a celebrity where they’d normally be inclined to not file the case.

We’ve seen many high profile Hollywood criminal case acquittals that were not tied to great legal work but the all out effort to bring even the thinnest cases against celebrities.     

Some celebrities have become regulars to petty scandals and media frenzies.  We think of Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan as troubled.  Were they not famous, they might have escaped arrest, conviction, and publicity mud baths.   Frankly none of their offenses deserved the massive attention they received.  Celebrity justice is by far the best reason to bar cameras from America’s courtrooms. 

Celebrities are natural targets for drunks, fools and publicity seeking parasites.   When out in public celebrities are always in danger of some unprovoked conflict.  
The best advice I can give anyone who is either famous or infamous is to lay low.  Hide behind those sun glasses and floppy hats when possible.  Pay with cash or a credit card with a business name at stores.   Discretion and conflict avoidance are paramount. 

However shit happens and you may be on the receiving end of a simple traffic citation.  You may become the victim of a disgusting criminal allegation made by some opportunist.   What you do during or after such an even can destroy or leave a career somewhat unscathed. 

Take the retired Chicago burglary detective, and now well-known actor Dennis Farina.   He once forgot he had a small loaded handgun in a bag as he was boarding a plane at LAX.  Was this some ugly crime, scandal or terrorist event?  Of course not, but Farina never had a chance with the TSA goons or LAX police. 

Eventually after spending thousands on a fine lawyer and avoiding additional publicity Farina was able to mitigate the forgettable mess into a non-conviction.  Farina’s career moved forward without a staining his reputation.  He never publicly lost his dignity.

Here are some rules:  Behave well during an arrest.  Argue your case in the courtroom and not on the street or in the press.  Always smile and try to look your best for police booking photos so they don’t look like wanted posters.  Never answer police questions, tell them you want a lawyer present first. If you’re unable to avoid the paparazzi, never try to hide your face from news cameras that looks terrible.  If cornered by journalists never say, “No Comment!”  Instead say something, WITH A SMILE,  “The matter is under investigation right now, thank you for your concern.”  If you’re already charged or indicted simply say the matter needs to be tried in the courtroom.   

Let your attorney and publicist handle the media fallout.  Unfortunately many otherwise good defense lawyers have their own publicity agenda or are not experienced to make wise media strategy.  Not all publicists are equal when it comes to crisis management.

Always remember the less said to the media is usually the best.   Always smile and never let anyone see you upset, angry or sweating.  Never slam you door or gas peddle when leaving uncomfortable locations.

Remember the paparazzi will get the big money for images and video of seemingly bad or emotionally motivated behavior.  Regrettably you will see those images again and again. The pictures will never go away and with the Internet they will out live all of us.   

Good luck, have fun, stay safe and enjoy bringing your talents to the world.

More on the TSA and its un-American Assault on Liberty, Privacy and Dignity

TSA Thug named Butler    From Video by Paul Huebl

Washington, DC—Most Americans surrender, line up like sheep and allow the despicable practice of the TSA's amateur security workers as they have their way with our personal property, bodies and even our children.  They abuse us tolerated simply because Americans are to intimidated to defend themselves.

Despite hundred of billions of dollars and this illusion of security the TSA has not stopped a single terrorist event.  The known post 9/11 efforts to disrupt air travel have been stopped by alert passengers that understand their duty to protect each other.   The TSA is in itself a meaningless exercise of the absurd.

Our government puts these poorly vetted, trained or educated unemployable losers in police style costumes with gold badges.  The reality is they should have put them into red jumpsuits and saved taxpayers a bundle rather than allow this officious masquerade. 

Here are three videos.  One is a musical satire hit piece from, Without a Face, Twisted Sexual Assault.  The second is from a political opponent of former House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi named John Dennis.   The third video is that of a shocking encounter I had with an African-American TSA bimbo named Butler, trying to seize my camera and prevent me from shooting video outside of Terminal 2 at LAX.

Grab the popcorn, sit back and by all means enjoy the entertainment:

Do More Guns Increase Crime? Here’s your answer!

St. Louis, MO—Last April the NRA held its Convention here.  More than 60,000 attendees came to see both the political side and the large gun show.   The NRA visits scattered locations throughout the nation every year.

These conventions are never held in the gun-unfriendly states but in states where the attendees can carry loaded and concealed firearms.  The various convention centers must suspend any gun carry prohibitions they may have any in order to win the NRA’s business.

Never less that 60,000 NRA people, most all of them well armed stay for about five or six days in these cities.  The crime rate never rises and there’s never been a known arrest of an attendee for violence.  You also never hear about the NRA attendees being robbed, raped or murdered.  The cowardly local criminals always lay low when the NRA is in town. 

Across this nation there have been tens of thousands of gun shows and again nobody settles their arguments with guns.  There is never misuse of the massive amount of firearms on display or carried by gun show attendees.

We don’t have a gun problem except when the law-abiding are precluded from the keeping and bearing of firearms.  We do have a serious crime problem that’s been fueled by a failed violent Drug War for over four decades.   The real problem is the courts simply refuse to separate the convicted and dangerous offenders from society.

By the way the next NRA Convention will be in the Spring of 20123 in Houston, TX.

Drew Peterson Trial Ends Third Week, The Best is Yet to Come!

Drew Peterson   Photo by Paul Huebl

Joliet, IL—Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow made a non-stop mess of his questionable effort to destroy Retired Bolingbrook police sergeant Drew Peterson.  He knows that while gossip and hate may be over the top, real evidence of murder and Peterson’s possible involvement is almost non-existent.

At best it can be shown that Peterson was a lousy husband and that Kathleen Savio was on a campaign to grab the marital assets of her failed marriage. She was an angry and scorned woman.

Savio had her emotional problems and was taking or in some cases not taking drugs prescribed to her to keep her under control.

It's also reasonable to believe that Peterson said some ugly things about and to Savio.  Divorces seldom bring out the best behavior of those involved. 

The biggest problem I have is calling Savio’s death a murder.   Aside from the original investigation and autopsy are the total lack of signs of a fight for life that would normally exist.  No defense wounds, nothing in the area disturbed nor were there broken fingernails with DNA material.  

We can’t dismiss the reality that Savio changed the locks on the home and Peterson had no key. 

The hearsay issue has very frightening implication to the American freedoms and liberty so many brave Americans gave life and limb to protect.  If they can get Drew Peterson through hearsay evidence, you’re next!  We all have someone in our lives that would lie just because they can.  They tell others and the story spins and grows to epic proportions before it’s ever heard in court. 

In this case, was Savio lying to those close to her?  She can’t be cross-examined nor was she ever placed under oath.   Next did the people claiming they heard her statements tell the truth?  Did they perhaps misunderstand what they were told, if they were told? 

As a cop and criminal defense investigator I learned long ago people will embellish or even lie if they thought it could somehow “bring justice”.  Everyone wants to help the cops especially in a high profile case that can bring fame and fortune.

There’s a huge rub here that we are sure to observe if this silliness continues.  That is that this case has been dragging on for years.  Peterson has a sharp legal team and they left no stones unturned.  Any time a defense investigator has this much time he will find more and more people that will rat on the witnesses.  Relationships dissolve or were never quite as solid as some of the witnesses think.  Three years of idle chatter and inconsistent stories will be put before the court.

Impeachment of witnesses becomes easy when people lie, embellish or spin their accounts to their so-called friends.  Lawyers know this so they employ investigators trained to flesh out impeachment witnesses and other evidence. 

The fun begins during the defense portion of trials because the impeachment witnesses are not part of discovery process.  They can be brought into courtrooms by surprise.  In high profile cases its common to see people we look up to like professionals, members of the clergy destroyed especially when the media is watching intently.

For a defense investigator having three years to watch, track and record witnesses is a gift from heaven.   Today, an investigator contacts a friend, relative or acquaintance of a witness and learns nothing but he dutifully leaves a business card behind.  Months later the phone rings and startling facts come to life. 

I believe that the so-called prosecution blunders and not what they seem.  They are deliberate.  Glasgow wants this trial to go away because he knows all he has are his shaky hearsay witnesses and he rightly anticipates a credibility bloodbath.  If there is a mistrial Glasgow knows he can blame the judge to save his own political ass.

The Forbidden Fruit of the Information Age

As for the jury and the evidence being kept out of the courtroom that’s another total disaster.  Few jurors have the self-discipline or the motivation to not actively search out the forbidden fruit provided by today’s Information Age.  They can be counted upon to follow their human curiosity and learn what causes sidebars and the jury to be removed from the courtroom.  In this case they are also learning that prosecutorial misconduct is running over the top here. 

I can’t predict just how this circus will end but it’s proving to be the greatest show on earth.  I don’t share early defense team beliefs that the judge will have the balls to render a directed verdict of Not Guilty when the state rests their case. Directed verdicts are rare and seldom granted even when solidly warranted.

The defense will be forced to put on a case complete with impeachment witnesses, experts and investigators.   I doubt seriously that we will hear from Drew Peterson.  I doubt he has anything to add to the mountain of interviews he’s granted.  The jury  already knows what he had to say about this case.  

This trial Will Change Lives
The case will go to this jury and they will either render a unanimous verdict or not.   If they follow the instruction of the court I doubt there can be a conviction.  Jurors seldom follow instruction so anything is possible. 

The only thing I know for sure is that this trial will change the lives of those involved and not for the best.  

Julian Assange Exists because of Government’s Lies and Damn Lies

London, UK—This sad saga began when a non-mainstream journalist, Julian Assange obtained a huge amount of undeniable government records and simply published them.  They pertain to the conduct of governments we expect to he honorable, forthright and free. 

Primarily the UK and the U.S. lied to their citizens and the world about the issues that led to two wars and thousands of American lives.  We all know that it’s our politicians that send our children off to fight their adventures.  Politicians must rely on public support and to gain that support time and time again through history they use lies and propaganda to achieve their means.  

Politicians are serial liars by their very nature.  We all have the liars we prefer but we never demand they tell the truth. 

A nation like Switzerland need not fear disclosure of their efforts because that nation is not ever involved with policing the world with their ideals. 

Unfortunately the United States is run by a bunch of politicians that always gain personal profit for their misconduct.  War is always profitable for our politicians even when they can’t win. 

The role of a journalist is not to protect governments, but to tell the world just what their governments are doing.  Famed writer, George Orwell that I quoted above also said, “"Journalism is printing what someone else does not want printed; everything else is public relations."

Julian Assange has taken great personal risk to do his job.  He’s embarrassed politicians worldwide and now they want to make him pay simply because he did his job.  There is an incredibly huge paradox, the nations screaming the loudest are the ones that claim they have freedom of the press.

I feel uncomfortable joining the ranks of Michael Moore, Danny Glover and assorted Left Wing radicals that have come out in support to Julian Assange.  I dare to say that the founding fathers of this great nation would have supported him too.

We must demand truthfulness, transparency and accountability of our government no matter what political animal or party is in charge.

It’s a total farce that the UK has placed a ring of 40 cops around the Ecuadorean embassy 24/7 to nab Assange if he tries to leave.  Ecuador has done the right thing here and I salute them in the name of freedom.  

California’s Socialist Politicians have all but Destroyed Their Filmmakers

Los Angeles, CA—There are very few TV series and movies being made in California or in greater Los Angeles.   Perhaps they have finally murdered their Golden Goose through excessive taxation.  That’s a strange paradox since liberal Hollywood film industry movers send avalanches of cash to the politicians that demand the most taxes.

They call it Runaway Production when production companies escape heavy taxes and permit fees.  Canada has offered every kind of tax break and incentive to lure filmmakers for decades.

I was absolutely shocked to lean last year that Germany will grant filmmakers nearly $9 million bucks to make at least 25% of a film there!  It is apparently cost effective because movies and TV series provide jobs for productive German taxpayers.

California politicians must schmooze their film industry or lose it.  There are many places in America and foreign nations that welcome the movie industry with tax breaks, perks and major cooperation.  For California's politicians it may already be too late. 

Chicago nickel and dimes filmmakers to death as they over-regulate them.  However any politically Conservative states like Arizona are right to work states and that creates problems for the many unions that represent workers such as the Screen Actors Guild. 

It’s pathetic when production companies find it’s cheaper and easier to pay massive transportation costs to move their talent, writers, and producers sometimes thousands of miles away to save money. 

As a writer, producer and actor I’m personally smitten with the idea of spending months in Europe working on films.  For me that’s already happened twice in recent years. 

The German government paid half of the entire budget for my all time favorite film, Paul Verhoeven’s, Black Book!  I guess some in government have learned filmmakers are great for local economies.

The great German film director, Werner Herzog tell aspiring filmmakers to forge rather than pay local government film permits.  I think he’s on to something!

There are big changes in store for filmmakers.  The equipment is better than ever and far less expensive to make films.  Movie theaters are about to become extinct as the average family now has their own big screen home theaters. 

Chicago’s Failed Gun Politics Just cost Taxpayers Well over $1 Million bucks!

BREAKING NEWS

Chicago, IL—As feeble-minded politicians responded to the U.S. Supreme Court,  McDonald vs City of Chicago ruling striking down gun bans by enacting a new one the taxpayers got raped yet again!

The NRA quickly filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of their members against the City of Chicago and Village of Oak Park.  After very expensive litigation the court ruled that the local government politicians were again violating the gun rights of law-abiding citizens.  The loser has to pay the legal fees of the winner. That amounted to $1,326,588.00. 

That’s only half the damage because the taxpayers were forced to pay for the legal fees incurred by the politicians.  The City claims they can't pay for cops to patrol the streets but that have lots of your money to waste violating your rights.

Today Federal Judge Milton I Shadur ordered Chicago and Oak Park to pay up!

Minute Order Resolving Fees NRA

RE: Drew Peterson, "He’s going to Kill Me, I just know it!"

Drew Peterso   Photo by Paul Huebl

Joliet, IL—The murder trial of Drew Peterson is not about physical evidence but a relationship gone bad, through the subjective mouths of people that hate the accused.

Was Kathleen Savio a victim of an accident or murder?  That is the first question that needs to be answered and we can only take a wild guess as to the answer.  We really don’t know because nobody saw what happened and there is no reliable way to reconstruct whatever happened in that bathtub.  Grandstanding experts are not clairvoyant and neither is prosecutor James Glasgow.

If we want to insist it was in fact a murder than we have to determine who was responsible.  There are really two potential suspects we know about.  Drew Peterson who conveniently was in a divorce/property contest with Savio seems logical.  What about Savio’s new boy toy?   We know Savio and her new lover had an argument at the time of her death. We also know she did not want to let him sleep over that fateful night. 

As much as anyone that hates Drew Peterson must admit is that the cause of death is pure speculation.  If indeed it was a murder speculation comes into play once again.  This is compounded by the undisputed fact that Peterson did not have the key to the house involved in this inquiry.

As for the morbid statements of fear, despair and horror some people attribute to Savio I’ve heard them well over a thousand times.   You see as a private investigator I served perhaps three or four thousand court Orders of Protection.  I’ve heard the petitioners first hand making allegations of every kind.

Most are not old enough to remember what it was like for divorce litigants before the “no fault” days of matrimonial law.  Up until the 1970’s every divorce petition contained wild accusations of assault with deadly weapons.  These had to be verified under oath!   Without such a statement no divorce was granted.  Any divorce lawyer from that sad time can verify this.

To get an Order of Protection today the petitioner must swear under oath that they were threatened, assaulted or had their property damaged by their former spouse or live in companion.  The allegations fly like huge flocks or migratory birds escaping the cold.

Many allegations connected with the petitions are made only to curry favor with property, child custody and financial support issues.  Often the allegations were designed to insure that the petitioner obtains or maintains exclusive use of the residence involved.   The sad truth is a substantial percentage of these petitions are based on simple perjury. 

Revenge by jilted spouses and lovers is also a serious factor in those kinds of legal proceedings.  Again the accusations fly.

Many divorce litigants want to involve their close friends and relatives as witnesses to reinforce their tales or woe in court.  They dramatize everything that can to that end.

I don’t want to suggest that the petitioners are always lying.  Over the years I have had one client murdered by her husband and another shot while working in a Scottsdale dental office as an assistant.  Many times there are valid claims made.  

That statistic comes out to two in several thousand cases.  Allegations made during divorce cases are just not very compelling or credible.  I’m glad to report that thousands of women who personally told me they would be killed are still alive today. 

I don’t want to not suggest that spouses don’t make threats of violence because they do.  The good news here is that only a tiny percentage of these threats ever amount to more than hurtful words.

The hearsay testimony being offered the Drew Peterson case has no real value to determine what may have happened to Kathleen Savio.   Remember Savio has never been placed under oath before her alleged statements were made.  Unfortunately taking an oath does little to prevent people from telling tales.

The guilt or innocence of Drew Peterson should be based on reliable physical evidence or eyewitness testimony.  In the State of Illinois vs. Drew Peterson there is neither.   

Why Carice Van Houten Should be Your Favorite Actress

Carice Van Houten

Amsterdam, NL—One evening nearly three years ago I discovered Carice Van Houten.  I was looking for something to watch on cable TV and flipping my remote control.  The Encore Channel was just beginning what became my favorite film of all times, Black Book.

I watched this film that involves three languages, Dutch, German and English with English subtitles. I speak German but unfortunately no Dutch.   The film recounted actual historical events in Nazi occupied Holland during the war. 

The Dutch Underground forces fought the Nazi’s courageously through sabotage and their protection of Jews from forced deportation, to what we now know were extermination camps.

Carice Van Houten played a Jewish cabaret singer, Rachael Stein who was hiding from the Nazis.  She has an austere life with a Dutch family that tried to convert her to their Christian faith.  She was waiting out the war that was turning against Hitler’s forces. 

Stein finds herself homeless and vulnerable and as luck would have it actively working within the Dutch Underground.  The film is a thriller in every aspect. The cast and crew are as good as it gets and the writing and direction by Paul Verhoeven, (Basic Instinct, Robo-Cop and Showgirls) truly made a film masterpiece.

The period costumes, vehicles and props all were amazing.  The terrific Black Book musical soundtrack is on my IPhone, IPad and MacBook.   

The bulk of this film was made at Filmstudio Babelsberg near Berlin because a generous German government film grant made for nearly half of the project’s budget.

Van Houten displayed incredible talent and range of abilities in Black Book.  In the film she swims, sings, dances, speaks three languages and plays every possible emotion.  Van Houten’s character was that of an unlikely but magnificent hero.  Don’t dare let me forget to mention, Van Houten may be the sexiest woman ever to grace the silver screen!

As an actress Van Houten is truly fearless in that she does whatever it takes to thrill her audience and make her character credible.   

Van Houten played Nina Von Stauffenberg in Valkyrie with Tom Cruise in her American film debut.  That part was too small for anyone to notice Van Houten’s significant talent and charms. 

Van Houten’s Los Angeles agent is the Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and they have apparently been sleeping rather than utilizing the gifts of this superstar.  We have to wake them up so they can begin to appreciate their hidden box office moneymaker.

Van Houten has a minimal but delightful accent that might be preventing Hollywood from embracing her.  Have they forgotten two legendary actresses with much more pronounced accents like Greta Garbo or Marlene Dietrich?

Van Houten can be seen today in a small but meaty role in HBO’s Game of Thrones series filmed in the UK.  She has been in films far beneath her abilities like Repo Men and Intruders.

The time to bring Van Houten into American theaters with a strong role is long overdue.   Van Houten is exactly what the Best Actress prize of the Academy Awards is all about.  I’d love nothing more than to see another Verhoeven film made for an American audience with this gifted leading lady.

By all means order your copy of Black Book on Blu-Ray from Amazon.com, you'll be glad you did!

Watch the trailer below!

If I Could Only Redesign and Rebuild CNN

Atlanta, GA—CNN joined Cable TV with a bang, but today it whines and whimpers.   Today CNN is on a death march to Hell because they have traded news reporting for public relations for the Democratic Party and the Obama Administration.

We must face the fact that every broadcaster wants to turn their news organization into a bully pulpit with a political agenda.  No matter how subtle they try to make it, the agenda glares right through, sending half of the audience scrambling to their remote controls.  The way to keep 100% of the audience is by avoiding politicization of the news.

CNN is personality driven chatter disguised as news.  To survive, CNN needs to simply try raw news for a change.   Real news reporting requires being first on the scene of every breaking story broadcasting video with interviews of newsmakers. 

I’d ditch the personalities and replace them with a team of sharp assignment desk jockeys that can introduce each story they’re working on to the viewers.  No opinions, no chitchat, just field reporting with video of news and newsmakers interviews.  Field reporting beats mindless anchor babble anytime.  

CNN needs to recruit a force of trustworthy and capable freelance reporters around the world that have sufficient camera and editing skills they can assign to gather the news and quickly report it.   Today everything needed to report live news is inexpensive and can easily fit into the smallest of cars or even motorcycles. 

The video journalist or what’s been called a one-man band is the model.  Many freelancers can grab a friend or family member to help with lights and such. 

The freelance reporters should be able to call in and pitch their own assignments to the assignment desk.  When the assignment desk learns of breaking news he or she needs to get a team or at least someone competent out to handle the story.  

Overpriced but pretty newsreaders sitting sometimes more than a 1000 miles away hearing the material most often third hand are the least qualified to comment on breaking news.

The importance is to get the information out quickly rather than have a pretty face redundantly tell us how sad, shocking, funny or troubling the story is that’s being reported. 

Of course there are stories we call packages that don’t have the urgency of live news.  They can be assigned and brought in to fill between breaking stories.

There are loads of unemployed or underemployed journalists all over the globe because of all the layoffs. Giving them let’s say $2000.00 per story would insure they would want to cover the news.  They also need to keep their cameras and equipment up to reasonable state of the art standards. 

The live shots should consist of assignment desk jockeys asking questions to their reporters in the field. This may not seem pretty to some news director types but the grittiness of breaking news all the time would bring excitement and something worth watching to the viewers.

With respect to what we call special projects they can still be done but without the celebrity anchor royalty weighing down the stories.  Political gabfests can still happen when real news slows down such as on the weekends.  

Nasty weather always leads in importance and sometimes sports.  These are best left alone except that more live reports from storm chasers are needed. 

The assignment desk areas and reporters cubicles should replace the ridicules news sets and anchor thrones.   Perhaps the time has come for opening the editorial meetings to cameras.  The public would love to see what drives the news gathering efforts. 

Can anyone even imagine transparency of a news operation?  Aside from protecting news sources there should be no secrets.  Remember its journalists that always complain about the lack of transparency, lets put the shoe on the other foot for a change.

As for reporting high profile court trials they should be packaged and reported on four times per day with the exception of verdicts and important breaking news related to each trial.  All those trial pundits truly suck and need to be banished from the earth. 

The new approach to news is to take many more interesting local breaking news stories and making them national.  A supermarket shooting, a horrible highway accident, police chase, a nasty fire or the arrest of some con artist fleecing the elderly is always more interesting than watching mindless anchor babble.

Drew Peterson’s Prosecutors Claim Their Cops are Incompetent, but were they really?

Drew Peterson   Photo by Paul Huebl

Joliet, IL—Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow has painted himself in a legal corner.  He’s trapped in a no win case where his theory is the cops investigating the case were incompetent.  Glasgow is now trying to sell a jury his theory that some more of his cops say the first crew mistook a murder for an accident.   The physical evidence has not changed.  There is still no significant evidence that indicates Kathleen Savio was even murdered or who may have killed her. 

We all know that bathtubs are deadly because healthy people do slip and fall in them.  I think we’ve all had a close call or two.  The problem here is Savio had a head wound and those all bleed profusely.  There was no blood shed outside of the tub.  There were no signs of a struggle.  The wound could have been easily been caused by contact while falling with any hard surface.  

We have an angry and now dead woman Glasgow labeled as a victim who was fighting over marital assets in her divorce.   Savio hired a locksmith to change the locks on that home she had exclusive control over.   That made it nearly impossible for Drew Peterson to slip in and do any harm to Savio.  

We also have a group of relatives of Savio that have sued Peterson in hope of gaining control over his property and other assets.  They have made themselves witnesses to alleged hearsay statements.  If they can frame Peterson and get him convicted, they win the gold!

Then there is Fox News, Geraldo Rivera and a well paid, grandstanding forensic pathologist, Michael Badden.  Years later, Badden performs a third autopsy on Savio's decayed remains and now guesses her death to be a murder.   There are numerous holes in Badden’s finding but he got tons of free publicity.

The exact cause and manner of Savio’s death is at best still undetermined.  It does look like an accident in every respect. 

What we don’t have is a single shred of physical evidence, a witness to the event under review or a confession from the suspect.

We have an audience of true crime story harpies that scream that Peterson’s 30 years in law enforcement made him an expert at getting away with murder.  These folks need to get a life. 

Peterson had a habit of dumping wives once they got, fat, old or crabby.  He replaced the old ones with very young women.  Some say he looked for his new wives at local high school proms. That behavior is offensive to a large segment of the population and Peterson may well deserve scorn for that failing.

Prosecutors routinely put their strongest witnesses on first and then hope their secondary witnesses can fill whatever gaps are left.  We’ve had five days of the state’s case and we’re still patiently waiting for anything at all compelling. 

The state has made two deliberate attempts to cause a Mistrial because it’s obvious that they know they can’t make even a weak showing.   They want to blame their failure on the judge rather than to accept responsibility.

We are still in America where we have fought war after war to preserve our Bill of Rights.  We cannot let Glasgow and an army of true crime harpies frame anyone for murder.   Peterson has been locked up without a trial for nearly four years.  It’s time to let him go since there is no real evidence.   

If we can destroy Drew Peterson with a bogus prosecution than any one of us can be next.     

Milwaukee and National Media Failed on their Reporting of the Sikh Temple Shooting.

Milwaukee, WI—I guess the reporters in this town were all off enjoying their Sunday at Home.  A mass shooting at a Sikh Temple is apparently not worthy of any meaningful attempt at reporting.  Other than a few video and photojournalists that captured some material the media had nothing.  The reporting was limited interviews of a few on scene Sikh worshipers with more questions of their own than answers. 

This important news story was totally produced and reported by police spokesmen!  There were simply weak rewrites of what officials reported rather than anything resembling enterprising efforts to explain this important story. 

The media failed to notice the suspect’s vehicle that’s surely been towed by police.  That would have been an important thing to do. Getting the owner’s name and examining various court record and government databases was an overlooked must. 

The police quickly raided a residence in nearby Cudahy and the media could have gotten names of residents to investigate.  They could have found plenty of people to help them build a profile of the dead suspect. 

Local law enforcement quickly labeled the incident as “Domestic Terrorism” but weren’t pressed for any information or details that would justify that moniker. 

The American media has forgotten how to do their jobs.  I guess we must wait for the obligatory ABC News, Brian Ross report to tell us that the Tea Party was behind the killings.

Have journalists been muzzled by government and intimidated into not reporting news?   This is a sad reflection of the death of journalism in America.

Indian Sikhs Murdered by American Ignorance, Misplaced Hate and Bad Laws.

Oak Creek,WI—I’m beyond sickened to hear about the carnage at the Sikh temple in this Milwaukee suburb.  Let me dare to presume the motive and cause behind this senseless tragedy.

I’m convinced that the killer was deranged and mistakenly assumed his targets were somehow radical Muslims bent on the destruction of Americans.   I’m sure he believed that the Whitehouse and many of our politicians have abandoned their duty to protect Americans from the very real radical Muslim threat.  The killer simply decided to murder his perceived demons. 

Sikhism is a somewhat new religion barely more than 500 years old.   It began in the Punjob region, as a bold movement by Indian Hindus that dared to separate from and renounced that religion. 

Sikhs believe in a supreme creator and have teachers called gurus that are life mentors.  Sikhs live by the Christian style, Golden Rule in every aspect of their life.   They are a kind and gentle lot that are incredibly generous to everyone they meet.  Unlike Muslims, Sikhs accept and embrace all other religions and people.

You also need to know that radical Muslims have committed Genocide and every conceivable atrocity against them and have persecuted Sikhs throughout their existence. 

Sikh men are not supposed to shave or cut their hair and are required to wear an identifiable turban along with a dagger called a kirpan.   The kirpan came as a result of a religious commandment given by Guru Gobind Singh. 

It was Guru Granth Sahib who taught that a Sikh must also have the courage to defend the rights of all who are wrongfully oppressed or persecuted irrespective of their color, caste or creed.

Sikhs have managed to distinguish themselves on the right side of every major world war or conflict.  I served with a fine Sikh Medical Corpsman in the U.S. Army in Germany who was drafted just like me.  Yes, he wore his beard an kirpan with the uniform!

Unfortunately Sikhs in America have all but abandoned their kirpans capitulating to our un-Constitutional laws banning the bearing of arms.  They rely on police for protection and sadly have relinquished much of their religious duty to defend themselves and others.  Too many Sikhs living here listen to our misguided politicians instead of their gurus in that regard. 

Let me be the first to encourage Sikhs living in America to again relearn the teachings of Gurus Gobind Singh and Granth Sahib.  These gurus were and are correct in their teachings.  The Sikhs that have chosen to live in America have the absolute right to keep and bear arms under our Constitution.  They still have all of their their religious and moral duty.

Let me tell you about the first known post 9/11 senseless murder of a Sikh in America.

In Mesa Arizona there was a fine Sikh family that settled here to persue the American dream.  It was the Singh Sodhi family.  Balbir Singh Sodhi owned a gas station and mini-mart and employed Both Americans and Mexican Americans.  Balbir wore his turban as he proudly and honorably served the people in his neighborhood.

Balbir was as horrified and indeed saddened as any American by the attacks by radical Muslims on September 11, 2001.  It was just a few days latter when a deranged lunatic, Frank Roque gunned down Balbir as he was working. 

Roque somehow believed he was heroic and wonderful for murdering what he thought was one of the Arab terrorists.  Roque was arrested tried and sentenced to death.  Later, the Arizona Supreme Court reduced that sentence to life without parole.  Balbir Singh Sodhi was yet another victim of the 9/11 attack

It was Balbir’s brother, Rena Singh Sodhi that told me about this crime through his tears just days later.  I met Rena as he was purchasing supplies for his restaurant at a Phoenix Costco store. 

Let me say I’m very close to a Sikh Family and have been for more than 40 years.  I have met many of their friends and have attended weddings and many other family functions with them.   I’m routinely their guest at the family estate in India and have toured the nation with them.  India is a safe and beautiful country where I’m always treated like visiting royalty. 

I have learned one thing about the Sikhs.  They may seem shy but if you need help anywhere in the world I will guarantee you that Sikh with the turban will do whatever he can to help and or protect you.  

I want to inform my blog visitors that they have a duty to protect Sikhs too.  As for my readers that are firearm trainers and such to please reach out to any Sikhs and take them to your local gun ranges.  You will be glad that you did.